Diagnostic to determine a valve/line freeze-up or failure in a fuel cell bleed manifold unit

ABSTRACT

A system and method for determining whether valves in a fuel cell system bleed manifold unit (BMU) are blocked with ice or have otherwise failed. The system opens a first bleed valve, closes a second bleed valve and opens an exhaust valve, and then reads a pressure signal to determine whether there is flow through a flow restriction to determine whether the first bleed valve or the exhaust valve is blocked. The system then closes the exhaust valve, leaves the first bleed valve open, and again reads the pressure signal to determine the pressure drop across the flow restriction, which will indicate whether the flow restriction the pressure sensor lines are blocked. The system then closes the first bleed valve and opens the second bleed valve to determine whether the pressure signal indicates a flow through the second bleed valve.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to a system and method for determiningwhether bleed valves in a fuel cell system are blocked with ice and,more particularly, to a system and method for determining whethervarious valves in a bleed manifold unit associated with split sub-stacksin a fuel cell system are blocked.

2. Discussion of the Related Art

Hydrogen is a very attractive fuel because it is clean and can be usedto efficiently produce electricity in a fuel cell. A hydrogen fuel cellis an electro-chemical device that includes an anode and a cathode withan electrolyte therebetween. The anode receives hydrogen gas and thecathode receives oxygen or air. The hydrogen gas is dissociated in theanode to generate free protons and electrons. The protons pass throughthe electrolyte to the cathode. The protons react with the oxygen andthe electrons in the cathode to generate water. The electrons from theanode cannot pass through the electrolyte, and thus are directed througha load to perform work before being sent to the cathode.

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC) are a popular fuel cell forvehicles. The PEMFC generally includes a solid polymer electrolyteproton conducting membrane, such as a perfluorosulfonic acid membrane.The anode and cathode typically include finely divided catalyticparticles, usually platinum (Pt), supported on carbon particles andmixed with an ionomer. The catalytic mixture is deposited on opposingsides of the membrane. The combination of the anode catalytic mixture,the cathode catalytic mixture and the membrane define a membraneelectrode assembly (MEA). MEAs are relatively expensive to manufactureand require certain conditions for effective operation.

Several fuel cells are typically combined in a fuel cell stack togenerate the desired power. For example, a typical fuel cell stack for avehicle may have two hundred or more stacked fuel cells. The fuel cellstack receives a cathode input reactant gas, typically a flow of airforced through the stack by a compressor. Not all of the oxygen isconsumed by the stack and some of the air is output as a cathode exhaustgas that may include water as a stack by-product. The fuel cell stackalso receives an anode hydrogen reactant gas that flows into the anodeside of the stack. The stack also includes flow channels through which acooling fluid flows.

The fuel cell stack includes a series of bipolar plates positionedbetween the several MEAs in the stack, where the bipolar plates and theMEAs are positioned between two end plates. The bipolar plates includean anode side and a cathode side for adjacent fuel cells in the stack.Anode gas flow channels are provided on the anode side of the bipolarplates that allow the anode reactant gas to flow to the respective MEA.Cathode gas flow channels are provided on the cathode side of thebipolar plates that allow the cathode reactant gas to flow to therespective MEA. One end plate includes anode gas flow channels, and theother end plate includes cathode gas flow channels. The bipolar platesand end plates are made of a conductive material, such as stainlesssteel or a conductive composite. The end plates conduct the electricitygenerated by the fuel cells out of the stack. The bipolar plates alsoinclude flow channels through which a cooling fluid flows.

The MEAs are permeable and thus allow nitrogen in the air from thecathode side of the stack to permeate therethrough and collect in theanode side of the stack, referred to in the industry as nitrogencross-over. Even though the anode side pressure may be higher than thecathode side pressure, the cathode side partial pressures will cause airto permeate through the membrane. Nitrogen in the anode side of the fuelcell stack dilutes the hydrogen such that if the nitrogen concentrationincreases beyond a certain percentage, such as 50%, the fuel cell stackbecomes unstable and may fail. It is known in the art to provide a bleedvalve at the anode exhaust gas output of the fuel cell stack to removenitrogen from the anode side of the stack.

An algorithm may be employed to provide an online estimation of thenitrogen concentration in the anode exhaust gas during stack operationto know when to trigger the anode exhaust gas bleed. The algorithm maytrack the nitrogen concentration over time in the anode side of thestack based on the permeation rate from the cathode side to the anodeside, and the periodic bleeds of the anode exhaust gas. When thealgorithm calculates an increase in the nitrogen concentration above apredetermined threshold, for example 10%, it may trigger the bleed. Thebleed is typically performed for a duration that allows multiple stackanode volumes to be bled, thus reducing the nitrogen concentration belowthe threshold.

Some fuel cell systems employ anode flow shifting where the fuel cellstack is split into sub-stacks and the anode reactant gas flows throughthe split sub-stacks in alternating directions. In these types ofdesigns, a bleed manifold unit (BMU) may be provided that includesvalves for providing the anode exhaust gas bleed. Because water ispresent in the anode exhaust gas, it is likely that the BMU will havewater remaining in it at system shut-down regardless of what measuresare taken to remove the water. This water may freeze if the outsideambient temperature is low enough for a long enough period of time. Onthe next start-up, an anode exhaust gas bleed may be required before theBMU is thawed out enough, where ice may block the flow in the BMU. Incertain fuel cell system designs, a continuous anode exhaust bleed isperformed during the start-up sequence because the fuel cell stack isparticularly sensitive to nitrogen collected during that time.

For a split stack system, the typical location to provide the anodeexhaust gas bleed is at the end of the stack flow. Therefore, two bleedvalues are used to provide the anode bleed depending on the flowdirection. Because a BMU is often provided to accommodate this form ofbleeding it is typically referred to as the BMU bleed method. However, acenter bleed also can be used that bleeds the anode exhaust from a drainvalve in a line joining the two sub-stacks. The center bleed istypically less efficient that an end flow or BMU bleed because of thelarger size of the drain valve.

The location for the bleed is one characteristic and the frequency andduration of the bleed is another characteristic. For a frozen stack, thebleed valve should be opened as much as possible to avoid any localizedwater build-up. This is referred to as a continuous bleed and can be aninefficient method of bleeding because hydrogen is also lost during theanode exhaust gas bleed. Thus, the system should return to a normalbleed schedule once the system is warmed up. The normal bleed methodshould be providing the bleeds as infrequently as possible to maximizesystem efficiency, while still maintaining good stack operation. In thismode, the bleed valves can be closed a significant percentage of thetime during operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, a system andmethod is disclosed for determining whether valves in a BMU are blockedwith ice or have otherwise failed. The BMU is provided in a fuel cellsystem including first and second split sub-stacks. The BMU includes afirst bleed valve, a second bleed valve, an exhaust valve, a flowrestriction and a pressure sensor that measures the pressure across theflow restriction. A controller determines whether the valves in the BMUare blocked in stages where the controller opens the first bleed valve,closes the second bleed valve and opens the exhaust valve, and thenreads the pressure signal from the pressure sensor to determine whetherthere is flow through the flow restriction to determine whether thefirst bleed valve or the exhaust valve is blocked. The controller thencloses the exhaust valve and leaves the first bleed valve open, andagain reads the pressure signal to determine the pressure drop acrossthe flow restriction, which will indicate whether the flow restrictionor the pressure sensor lines are blocked. The controller then closes thefirst bleed valve and opens the second bleed valve to determine whetherthe pressure signal indicates a flow through the second bleed valve.

Additional features of the present invention will become apparent fromthe following description and appended claims, taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a fuel cell system employing splitsub-stacks and a BMU; and

FIG. 2 is a flow chart diagram showing a process for providing a stackanode exhaust gas bleed in the event of a BMU failure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The following discussion of the embodiments of the invention directed toa system and method for determining if fuel cell system BMU is blockedwith ice or has otherwise failed is merely exemplary in nature, and isin no way intended to limit the invention or its applications or uses.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a fuel cell system 10 including split fuelcell sub-stacks 12 and 14 that operate under anode flow shifting. Whenthe flow is in one direction, an injector bank 16 injects fresh hydrogeninto the anode side of the sub-stack 12 on anode input line 24. Anodegas that is output from the sub-stack 12 is sent to the sub-stack 14 onconnecting line 20. When the flow is in the opposite direction, aninjector bank 18 injects fresh hydrogen into the anode side of thesub-stack 14 on anode input line 26 that is output from the sub-stack 14and sent to the sub-stack 12 on the line 20. A drain valve 22 isprovided in the line 20 and can be used for a center bleed, as will bediscussed in more detail below.

A BMU 30 is provided at an anode input to the split sub-stacks 12 and 14and provides an anode exhaust gas bleed during certain times to removenitrogen from the anode side of the sub-stacks 12 and 14 based on anysuitable bleed schedule. The BMU 30 includes a line 32 that connects theanode input lines 24 and 26 and an exhaust line 34 that connects theline 32 to the exhaust of the system 10, typically the cathode sideexhaust of the sub-stacks 12 and 14. A first bleed valve 36 is providedin the line 32 proximate to the sub-stack 12 and a second bleed valve 38is provided in the line 32 proximate the sub-stack 14. An exhaust valve40 is provided in the line 34 that is opened during the anode bleed andother times as may be required. A flow restriction 44 is provided in theline 34 to limit the amount of anode exhaust gas that can be bled intothe environment.

A differential pressure sensor 46 is provided across the flowrestriction 44, and measures a pressure difference across the flowrestriction 44 to identify the flow rate through the flow restriction44. When flow begins through the flow restriction 44, the pressuresensor 46 goes up from a zero value, or a near zero value, depending onthe resolution of the sensor 46, to a pressure indicative of a properflow through the flow restriction 44.

When the system 10 is operating under anode flow-shifting and no bleedis commanded, the bleed valves 36 and 38 are both closed, so thatdepending on the direction of the anode gas flow, the output of thesecond sub-stack is dead-ended. If a bleed is commanded, and theflow-shifting is in the direction from the sub-stack 12 to the sub-stack14 through the line 20, then the bleed valve 38 is opened and the bleedvalve 36 is closed. Likewise, if a bleed is commanded and the flow is inthe direction from the sub-stack 14 to the sub-stack 12 through the line20, then the first bleed valve 36 is opened and the second bleed valve38 is closed. Thus, the anode exhaust gas is bled out of the exhaustline 34 through the flow restriction 44 and the exhaust valve 40.

A controller 48 controls the injector banks 16 and 18, controls thevalves 36, 38 and 40 and receives a pressure reading signal from thepressure sensor 46.

As discussed above, the BMU 30 may collect water at various locationswhen the anode exhaust gas flow is flowing therethrough, and may retainwater after the system 10 is shut-down. This water may freeze if thesystem 10 is in a cold enough environment for a long enough period oftime. Thus, at the next system start-up water may have frozen in the BMU30 at locations such as the bleed valves 36 and 38, the flow restriction44, the exhaust valve 40 and the lines to the pressure sensor 46, whichmay block the flow of the anode exhaust gas when a bleed is desired.

The present invention proposes a method for providing a suitable anodeexhaust gas bleed during those times when the BMU 30 is in a failuremode, such as from frozen water blocking flow, which may prevent a bleedthrough the BMU 30. FIG. 2 is a flow chart diagram 50 showing a processfor providing an anode exhaust gas bleed that includes thisconsideration. When the system 10 is started at box 52 it will typicallyimmediately perform a BMU diagnostics check at box 54 to determinewhether the BMU 30 is operating properly. In certain systems, the BMUdiagnostics check can take over five seconds to complete due tocomplexity. The first BMU diagnostics check should be done at start-upbefore nitrogen and water have a chance to build up in the sub-stacks 12and 14. The BMU diagnostics check may perform a number of diagnostics onthe BMU 30, including determining whether the BMU 30 is frozen or hasfailed.

To determine the complete function of the BMU 30, it can be tested atthree stages. For a first stage, one of bleed valves 36 or 38 is openeddepending on the anode flow direction and the exhaust valve 40 isopened. If the opened bleed valve 36 or 38 and the exhaust valve 40allow flow to the system exhaust, then the pressure sensor 46 provides apressure reading across the flow restriction 44. If the flow through theBMU 30 is unrestricted, then the pressure sensor 46 should provide apressure reading that is about the same as the differential pressurebetween the cathode and anode of the spilt sub-stacks 12 and 14.

If a proper flow is detected at the first stage, then a second stageincludes closing the exhaust valve 40 to determine if the pressuresensor 46 measures a zero or near zero level, and if it does, the flowrestriction 44 is not blocked with ice. If the pressure sensor 46 doesprovide a high enough pressure reading, the flow restriction 44 or thelines from the pressure sensor 46 to the line 34 maybe restricted, suchas by ice. If ice does block the passage downstream of the anode side tothe pressure sensor 46, the flow detection seen in the first stage mayactually be just the pressure difference between the anode side pressureand the cathode side pressure that existed if the line 34 was frozen. Ifonly the first stage was used, the diagnostic would fail to detect icein these parts of the BMU 30.

For the third stage of the diagnostics, the bleed valve that was openedin the first stage is closed and the bleed valve that was closed in thefirst stage is opened to determine whether it is blocked with ice.Particularly, if the bleed valve 36 was opened and the bleed valve 38was closed during the first stage, the bleed valve 36 is closed and thebleed valve 38 is opened during the third stage, or vice versa. Theexhaust valve 40 does not need to be closed because that function hasalready been tested in the second stage, although other variations ofvalve closure, such as closing all the valves as a final channel flow,can be included to simplify implementation within the framework of theexisting anode flow shift and control. If all of the stages indicateflow, then the BMU 30 is operating properly with no flow restrictionsand the BMU 30 passes the diagnostics check. If any of the stagesindicate that the BMU 30 is not operating properly, then the system 10can switch to a center bleed through the drain valve 22 to keep thesub-stacks 12 and 14 operational, or perform some other remedial action.

An algorithm operating in the system 10 determines whether thediagnostics check has passed at decision diamond 56. If the BMUdiagnostics has passed at the decision diamond 56, then the algorithmdetermines whether it is cold enough at decision diamond 58 to beconcerned about ice blocking the flow channels in the BMU 30, eventhough it may currently be operating properly. The algorithm can use anysuitable technique to determine whether the environment is too cold,such as an ambient temperature reading, a stack temperature reading, acooling fluid temperature reading, etc. The algorithm can employ anysuitable temperature threshold for this determination, such as forexample 50° C. If the system is not too cold at the decision diamond 58,then the algorithm uses the normal BMU bleed schedule employing thebleed valves 36 and 38 at box 60. Any suitable BMU bleed schedule can beemployed based on the accumulation of nitrogen on the anode side of thesplit sub-stacks 12 and 14.

The algorithm then determines whether a predetermined time has expiredwhere another BMU diagnostics check should be performed at decisiondiamond 62. The system may perform a BMU diagnostics check during normaloperation to check for BMU flow that does not have anything to do withice, but could be for other failures. If it is not time for the next BMUdiagnostics check at the decision diamond 62, then the algorithm returnsto providing a normal BMU bleed. If it is time for a BMU diagnosticscheck, the algorithm prevents the anode exhaust gas bleed at box 64 andreturns to the box 54 to perform the BMU diagnostics check.

If the start-up temperature is cold enough at the decision diamond 58,it is possible that a no-flow condition could occur due to ice in theBMU 30. In this situation, the algorithm goes to a continuous BMU bleedat box 66 where one or the other of the bleed valves 36 or 38 is alwaysopened depending on the flow direction through the sub-stacks 12 and 14.

If the diagnostics check fails at the decision diamond 56, the algorithmgoes into the less desirable center bleed mode using the drain valve 22.Typically, the drain valve 22 is larger than the bleed valves 36 and 38,and thus the amount of hydrogen that is lost during a center bleed issignificant. Further, when the drain valve 22 is used for a bleed,little, if any, of the anode exhaust during the flow shifting process issent to the downstream split stack because most of it is exhausted outof the drain valve 22. It is possible to perform a parallel flow intoboth of the split stacks 12 and 14 at the same time during the centerbleed. However, such an operation loses even more hydrogen.

The algorithm first determines whether it is too cold for a normalcenter bleed at decision diamond 68. If it is not too cold at thedecision diamond 68, then the algorithm performs the normal center bleedat box 70 where the drain valve 22 is opened and closed on a desirableschedule based on the accumulation of nitrogen in the split sub-stacks12 and 14. Periodically, the algorithm will determine whether it is timefor a BMU diagnostics check at decision diamond 72, and if not, returnsto the normal center bleed at the box 70. The BMU bleed diagnosticcannot be done during the center bleed operation because if the BMU 30is working, the hydrogen flow from the center bleed and the BMU bleedcan exceed hydrogen emissions limit, such as for example 4%. The centerbleed is suspended temporarily at box 74 for the BMU diagnostics to berun. The time without the bleed could put stack operation at risk.Therefore, the center bleed is maintained and the BMU diagnostics issuspended until the system warms up to a temperature that does not needa continuous bleed, for example 40° C. If it is too cold at the decisiondiamond 68, then the algorithm performs a continuous center bleedthrough the drain valve 22 at box 76 until the temperature is highenough where ice will not be blocking the flow channels.

The foregoing discussion discloses and describes merely exemplaryembodiments of the present invention. One skilled in the art willreadily recognize from such discussion and from the accompanyingdrawings and claims that various changes, modifications and variationscan be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as defined in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A fuel cell system comprising: a first splitsub-stack; a second split sub-stack; a bleed manifold unit (BMU)provided at the input of the first and second split sub-stacks, saidbleed manifold unit including a first bleed valve, a second bleed valve,an exhaust valve, a flow restriction and a pressure sensor, saidpressure sensor being coupled across the flow restriction and providinga pressure signal indicating flow through the flow restriction; and acontroller that is programmed for determining whether flow paths in theBMU are blocked, said controller opening the first bleed valve, closingthe second bleed valve and opening the exhaust valve, and reading thepressure signal from the pressure sensor to determine whether there is apressure drop across the flow restriction, indicating flow through theflow restriction where if no flow is detected then one of the firstbleed valve or the exhaust valve is blocked, said controller furtherprogrammed for closing the exhaust valve, leaving the first bleed valveopen, and reading the pressure signal to determine the pressure dropacross the flow restriction where a non-zero flow shows a restriction inthe flow restriction or pressure sensor lines, said controller furtherprogrammed for closing the first bleed valve and opening the secondbleed valve to determine whether the pressure signal indicates a flowthrough the second bleed valve.
 2. The system according to claim 1wherein the exhaust valve is closed when the controller reads thepressure signal to determine whether the flow restriction or thepressure sensor lines are blocked.
 3. The system according to claim 1wherein the exhaust valve is open when the controller reads the pressuresignal to determine whether the flow restriction or the pressure sensorlines are blocked.
 4. The system according to claim 1 wherein thecontroller determines whether the valves in the BMU are blocked withice.
 5. A fuel cell system comprising: a first split sub-stack; a secondsplit sub-stack; a bleed manifold unit (BMU) provided at the input ofthe first and second split sub-stacks, said bleed manifold unitincluding a first bleed valve, a second bleed valve, an exhaust valve, aflow restriction and a pressure sensor, said pressure sensor beingcoupled across the flow restriction and providing a pressure signalindicating flow through the flow restriction; and a controller that isprogrammed for determining whether flow paths in the BMU are blocked,said controller using three separate stages to determine whether theflow paths are blocked where each stage includes opening some valves,closing some valves and reading the pressure signal.
 6. The systemaccording to claim 5 wherein the first stage includes the controlleropening the first bleed valve, closing the second bleed valve andopening the exhaust valve, and reading the pressure signal from thepressure sensor to determine whether there is a pressure drop across theflow restriction indicating flow through the flow restriction valuewhere if no flow is detected then one of the first bleed valve or theexhaust valve is blocked.
 7. The system according to claim 6 wherein thesecond stage includes the controller closing the exhaust valve andleaving the first bleed valve open, and reading the pressure signal todetermine the pressure drop across the flow restriction where a non-zeroflow shows a restriction in the flow restriction or pressure sensorlines.
 8. The system according to claim 7 wherein the third stageincludes the controller closing the first bleed valve and opening thesecond bleed valve to determine whether the pressure signal indicates aflow through the second bleed valve.
 9. The system according to claim 7wherein the exhaust valve is closed during the second stage.
 10. Thesystem according to claim 7 wherein the exhaust valve is open during thesecond stage.
 11. The system according to claim 5 wherein the controllerdetermines whether the valves in the BMU are blocked with ice.
 12. Amethod for identifying a failure in a bleed manifold unit (BMU) providedat the input of first and second split sub-stacks, said bleed manifoldunit including a first bleed valve, a second bleed valve, an exhaustvalve, a flow restriction and a pressure sensor, said pressure sensorbeing coupled across the flow restriction and providing a pressuresignal indicating flow through the flow restriction, said methodcomprising: opening the first bleed valve, closing the second bleedvalve and opening the exhaust valve, and reading the pressure signalfrom the pressure sensor to determine whether there is a pressure dropacross the flow restriction, indicating flow through the flowrestriction where if no flow is detected then one of the first bleedvalve or the exhaust valve is blocked; closing the exhaust valve andleaving the first bleed valve open, and reading the pressure signal todetermine the pressure drop across the flow restriction where a non-zeroflow shows a restriction in the flow restriction or pressure sensorlines; and closing the first bleed valve and opening the second bleedvalve to determine whether the pressure signal indicates a flow throughthe second bleed valve.
 13. The method according to claim 12 wherein theexhaust valve is closed when the controller is reading the pressuresignal to determine whether the flow restriction or the pressure sensorlines are blocked.
 14. The method according to claim 12 wherein theexhaust valve is open when the controller reads the pressure signal todetermine whether the flow restriction or the pressure sensor lines areblocked.